<p>How to get people and technology to work together.</p><p><it>I recently visited Las Vegas. As I wandered through a huge casino, I was struck by the relative passivity of the gamblers. Win or lose, they kept their cool. In fact, it seemed that the larger the stakes, the less emotion they showed. Maybe that's because they understand the game they're playing, the odds against them, and the rewards for winning—all before they sit down to play. Sadly, software project managers begin their gamble without really knowing these things. Therefore, they tend to be a lot more emotional as the game is played. In this column, Brian Lawrence and Bob Johnson argue that software project managers can learn important lessons from the gambler.</it></p><p>—<it>Roger Pressman</it></p>